Martha's Macncheese

The recipe is originally from Martha Stewart, but I got the recipe from the lady at Smitten Kitchen. I made this for some of my friends after a long day of skiing. It was a blast but we were ready for some warm food. Oh and do you notice some of the green in the macncheese picture? It's because I sent Nick to get the supplies. I asked for macaroni and he came back with 3 different types of pasta--none of them was macaroni. I chose the mixed pasta wheels (hence the green) instead of the egg noodles or farfalle. He tried.

Nick and I are getting ready to leave tomorrow (not really, I spent the day reading and baking cakes) so we'll be as unprepared as we usually are! My mom still can't get over the fact that we're only bringing carry-ons with us for 4 months. She keeps trying to sneak more stuff into my Vera Bradley. Oh well, tomorrow we fly to LA for a couple days.

The recipe serves lots of people!

6 tbsp butter
1/2 cup all purpose flour
5 1/2 cups whole milk
2 tsp sea salt
1/2 tsp cayenne powder (I like spicy food)
1/2 tsp black pepper
4 1/2 cups shredded sharp cheddar cheese
2 cups shredded Gruyere (we even used the creamy version and it worked)
1 lb macaroni or any other pasta, really

Preheat the oven to 375 degrees. Grease a 9 x 13 inch baking dish. You could also just use 2 smaller casserole dishes.
In a large saucepan, melt the butter over medium heat until it bubbles. Whisk in the flour gradually. Cook for 2-3 minutes, then pour in the milk gradually. Whisk constantly so the mixture stays smooth until the milk comes to a slight simmer and begins to thicken. This will take about 15 minutes. Just be patient or make your sisters do it like I did.
While this is happening bring a pot of salted water to a boil and boil the pasta for 3 minutes. Strain the pasta, then pour into greased baking pan.
Take saucepan off heat. Add the spices, salt, 3 cups cheddar cheese, and 1 1/2 cups Gruyere cheese. Let sit for 5 minutes, then stir gently to mix together.
Pour the cheese mixture over the pasta and mix to distribute the cheese mixture evenly. Sprinkle with the rest of the shredded cheeses (add some breadcrumbs and extra butter on top if desired) and bake for 30 minutes until the cheese is golden brown.

Feta & Chive Biscuits

You wouldn't think that I'd be in the mood for fluffy buttery biscuits after the amount of cookies I've been downing these days, but I was - and these biscuits are, not surprisingly, amazing. They're very easy to make and perfectly flavorful. I do think it's time to eat some salad now, though. But I also made a banana upside-down cake for later!

Feta & Chive Biscuits
Slightly adapted from Joy the Baker

3 cups all-purpose flour

1 tbsp sugar
2 1/2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1/2 tsp salt
1/4 tsp cracked black pepper
3/4 cup unsalted butter, cold & cut into cubes
1 egg, beaten
3 tbsp cold water
3/4 cup sour cream, cold
1/3 cup chopped chives
3/4 cup crumbled feta cheese
1 egg, beaten for the egg wash
topping: coarse sea salt, cracked black pepper, smoky paprika

Pumpkin Gnocchi with Brown Butter Sage Sauce

This is probably one of my favorite gnocchi recipes. It's super simple to make. I first made the gnocchi with a bunch of friends during a gnocchi making party I hosted. We made a lot of gnocchi that night (ricotta, sweet potato, and russet potato) with various topping (tomato sauce, brown butter sage, and olive oil). The recipe is from The Skinny Fork.

1 cup pumpkin puree
1 1/2 cups white whole wheat flour
1 large egg
1/8 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 pinch salt

For the brown butter:
1/2 stick butter
7-9 fresh sage leaves
1 pinch salt

Pumpkin Doughnuts

I made these last week for no apparent reason. Just because the recipe looked so good and I had a lot of pumpkin to use (as usual). The recipe is from a blog called Tessa Domestic Diva.

1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup brown rice flour
1/2 cup sorghum flour
1/2 cup tapioca flour
2/3 cup brown sugar
1 teaspoon cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon baking soda
1/2 teaspoon baking powder
1/2 teaspoon salt
1 1/2 teaspoons chia meal mixed w/ 2 tablespoons hot water or 1 egg
3/4 cup pumpkin puree
1/4 cup vegetable oil
1 teaspoon vanilla extract

1. Grease 2-3 baking pans and preheat the oven to 350 degrees.
2. In a bowl, whisk together the flours, cinnamon, baking soda, baking powder, and salt. In a separate bowl, whisk together the pumpkin, egg or chia, sugar, oil, and vanilla. Mix the flour into the wet ingredients until a sticky dough forms.
3. Place dough inside a large ziploc bag. Cut a hole in one corner of the bag and pipe some dough into a doughnut shape onto the greased baking pans. Slightly overlap the ends of the dough. I actually made my hole too small so I had to make like 3 circles on top of each other to get reasonably sized doughnuts.

4. If you want cinnamon sugar doughnuts, mix 1 tbsp cinnamon plus 3 tbsp raw cane sugar and sprinkle over doughnuts.
5. Bake in the oven for about 10 minutes until firm. Let rest for a few minutes, the place on wire racks to cool. For chocolate drizzle, melt 1/3 cup chocolate chips and add 1 tsp coconut oil. For glaze mix 1/3 cup powdered sugar with 1 tsp coconut oil and 1-2 tsp almond milk.

Cranberry Apple Tart

Before you make this tart, I just have to warn you-- it's amazing and it'll be gone before you know it! Also don't heat it up before serving. Hehe. I served it at Thanksgiving dinner for my cousin Julian's birthday and it turned into mush. Still delicious though. The recipe is from My New Roots!!! Oh and SURPRISE it's vegan and gluten free! 

For the crust:

1 cup rolled oats 

1/2 cup pecans

1/4 cup honey

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1 tsp. vanilla 

1/2 tsp sea salt

75 g whole buckwheat flour (scant 1/2 cup)

For the filling:

1 apple, sliced thin

2 cups fresh cranberries

1/2 cup maple syrup 

2 Tbsp. chia seeds

6 Tbsp. orange juice 

1/4 cup coconut oil, melted

1 tsp. vanilla 

1 tsp. cinnamon

1/4 tsp. cardamom

zest of 1 orange

Pumpkin Roll

Thanksgiving is not a huge deal for my family. We actually used to spend it in Mexico, but these last couple of years we've been sitting down to an actual Thanksgiving meal. The first time I turkey or stuffing was in high school when we would go to my friend Amanda's house after Thanksgiving and eat all of her mom's leftovers. Gradually my family is learning to make the staple American dishes with some Vietnamese food thrown in (this year we finished up our dinner with my aunt's pho) Pumpkin roll is one of our favorites. It's my job to make it every year, and my sisters also pitch in to help. We use the Libby's pumpkin roll recipe.

Cake

• powdered sugar (to sprinkle on towel)
• 3/4 cup all-purpose flour
• 1/2 teaspoon baking powder
• 1/2 teaspoon baking soda
• 1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
• 1/4 teaspoon salt
• 3 large eggs
• 1 cup raw cane sugar
• 2/3 cup pumpkin puree

Filling

• 1 package cream cheese, at room temperature
• 1 cup powdered sugar
• 4 tablespoons butter, at room temperature
• 1 teaspoon vanilla extract

Beet Apple Gingerbread

Hello! My name is Catherine and I am new to Pittsburgh Kitchen.  I am originally from the same part of Pittsburgh as Laura, although I only just met her last year. We enjoyed cooking and sharing recipes while we worked together, so she invited me to contribute.  A few months ago, I moved to a small city in Russia.  I write my own blog with some recipes and reflections about living abroad, but I’ll post here whenever a recipe makes me particularly nostalgic.

This recipe is my beet redemption.  Before I left for Russia, we had a dinner party at Laura’s house and I tried to make beet pancakes that utterly failed.  This beet cake is an adaptation and amalgam of about a half dozen zucchini and carrot cake recipes.

Ingredients:

• 1 1/2 cups of grated apples and beets (1 small-medium beet, peeled and grated and 2 small apples, peeled, cored and grated)
• 2 cups flour
• pinch salt
• 1/2 tsp baking powder
• 1/2 tsp baking soda
• 2 tsp powdered ginger
• 3/4 c oil
• 2 eggs
• 1/2 cup brown sugar
• 1/2 cup sugar
• 1/2 cup walnuts
• 1/2 cup candied ginger (I made my own candied ginger using Alton Brown's recipe)

Chickpea Salad with Minty Yogurt Dressing

I made this chickpea salad from the Kitchn along with chicken salad to make pita sandwiches. This would also make an easy healthy packed lunch as either a sandwich or salad, but I think it would be best to keep the yogurt dressing separate from the salad until ready to eat.

CHICKPEA SALAD WITH MINTED YOGURT DRESSING

Adapted from the Kitchn

1/4 cup extra virgin olive oil

1 tbsp lemon zest

2 tbsp lemon juice

1/4 cup flat-leaf parsley, chopped

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 tsp cumin

1 tsp coarse salt

1/2 tsp paprika

1/2 cup tomatoes, chopped

1/2 cup red onion, chopped

3 cups drained chickpeas 

1 cup plain yogurt, preferable Greek

2 tbsp mint, chopped

Cookie Dough Truffles

This is basically just cookie dough without raw eggs, so you can gorge yourself without worrying about scary diseases! Perfect. When I was looking up stuff about this recipe, there was also talk about raw flour, but I am willing to ignore that because I don't care - cookie dough truffles!!!

I made little balls and covered one third with melted chocolate chips, one third with melted white chocolate chips and left one third uncovered, but you could easily just eat it with a spoon out of a bowl. The recipe I used is from a cookbook by the bloggers of Love and Olive Oil - I got the recipe as reposted on Bakerella.

COOKIE DOUGH TRUFFLES

Adapted from The Cookie Dough Lover's Cookbook, reposted on Bakerella

1/2 cup butter, 1 stick (room temp)

1/4 cup sugar

1/2 cup light brown sugar

2 tbsp milk

1/2 tsp vanilla

1 1/4 cup flour

1/2 tsp salt

1/2 cup mini-chocolate chips (or normal sized)

sprinkles, optional

toothpicks or small popsicle sticks

Orange & Cranberry Pound Cake

This is another example of how I can have really good intentions of making something for a particular reason or to give to someone, but then time after time what actually happens is I start eating it right away. I was going to save this for Thanksgiving, but instead we'll probably eat all of it by Thursday.

ORANGE & CRANBERRY POUND CAKE

Adapted from Joy the Baker's Chocolate Orange Cream Cheese Pound Cake

2 cups flour

1 1/2 tsp baking powder

1/2 tsp salt

1 1/2 cup sugar

2 tbsp orange zest (I used the zest from 1 large orange)

8 oz cream cheese (1 package), softened

3/4 cup butter (1 1/2 sticks), room temp

4 large eggs

2 tsp vanilla extract

1 cup fresh cranberries

Lemon & Dill Chicken Salad

I originally made chicken salad this way, with lemon and dill, for my friend Angela's baby shower, and I made it again for Halloween to serve in pitas! We wanted to make sure we all had some real dinner in addition to the huge amounts of sweets we scarfed while handing candy out to trick or treaters. (The recipe took a while before making it to the blog since I lost my camera charger for the millionth time.)

You can either make this very lemony or just a little lemony, but either way it's a great lunch and a crowd-pleaser! This is just a slight variation on the chicken salad I usually make, which is a little more traditional, without the lemon and herbs and with walnuts. I think I usually use some white vinegar instead of lemon juice in the sauce when I made it the other way.

LEMON & DILL CHICKEN SALAD

5-6 chicken breasts

1 cup green onions (or white onion), diced

1/2 cup raisins (or halved grapes)

1 cup apple, roughly chopped

1/2 cup fresh dill, trimmed and packed (or one very full handful)

1/2 cup mayonaise 

1/2 plain yogurt or sour cream 

juice of 1 lemon
as much zest as you want (1 whole lemon's zest if you want it real lemony)
1 tbsp brown sugar
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp salt
pepper

Couscous Winter Salad

This week my grandpa's sister and her two daughters visited from Texas, so we had a big family dinner on Saturday before they headed back south. The last time they had visited was about twenty years ago, so it was good to see them.

Linda took this picture of Great Aunt Margie, Grandpa and Grandma, and, of course, Twilly.

My mom had a lot of food and I brought this salad, which is a winter version of the summer salad I posted a few months ago. Instead of blueberries and basil, this salad's got roasted butternut squash ad dried apricots and cranberries. I used spinach this time because I didn't know how the family would do with a kale salad, but normally I would have made it with "massaged" kale.

My mom bringing the salad to the table.

COUSCOUS WINTER SALAD

2 cups couscous (I used whole wheat ones this time)

2 cups water

1 tsp turmeric

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tsp olive oil

1 tsp salt

Bring the water to boil with the turmeric, cinnamon, olive oil and salt. Once it's boiling, turn off the heat and add in the couscous. Cover and let sit for about 10 minutes before fluffing it with a fork.

Cranberry Maple Cornbread

Last winter I learned how amazing fresh cranberries are for baking - I made those crumb bars and Michelle made great blondies. However, I didn't start using them until the very end of their season! 

This is the second time I've made this amazing skillet cornbread this month. I love cornbread, and this recipe, from Cookie + Kate, is my new favorite.

Today I've been watching Frontier House, one of those PBS series where families "go back in time" and live as authentically as possible in a certain time period. They use cast iron skillets! You can make this cornbread in a normal baking dish as well, though. My directions are written for baking it in a skillet, but you could easily adapt it for a baking dish. Speaking of adapting, this is the cornbread recipe I'll be using for future adaptations!

Frontier House!!

CRANBERRY MAPLE CORNBREAD

Slightly adapted from Cookie + Kate

1/2 cup butter (1 stick)
1 1/2 cup cornmeal
1 1/2 cup whole wheat flour
1 tbsp coarse salt
2 tsp baking powder
1/2 tsp baking soda
1 tsp cinnamon
1 1/2 cups buttermilk
3 eggs
1/2 cup maple syrup
1 1/2 cups fresh cranberries
2 tbsp sugar (normal or turbinado) to top, optional

Pumpkin Cheesecake

I just roasted my first pumpkin of the season, so it's time for endless pumpkin recipes!!! I made this for a perfectly fall dinner with our friends, Chris and Angela. We made some beef pho for them and Laura made an amazing ricotta, pear, and roasted garlic pizza. This recipe is from an old roommate (Colleen). This pie looks swirly since I forgot to add the cinnamon into the mix before pouring it into the crust. Instead, I sprinkled the cinnamon on top and used a spatula to swirl it into the batter.

The crust:
2 cups graham cracker crumbs
1/4 cup sugar
pinch salt
1/2 cup coconut oil or butter, melted

Filling:
1 1/2 sticks cream cheese (2 if you want a creamier cheesecake)
1 cup pumpkin puree
2 eggs
1/2 tsp salt
2/3 cup brown sugar
2 tsp pumpkin pie spice
1 tsp vanilla

Pumpkin Chai Smoothie

Can you tell I've been roasting pumpkins by all the pumpkin recipes lately? Well here's another one.

1 large, ripe banana
1/3 cup pumpkin puree
1/3 cup almond milk
1/3 cup pumpkin chai tea mix (I picked up some Tazo chai)
3 ice cubes
1 tsp bee pollen

Place all ingredients in a blender and puree. Pour into glass and top with additional bee pollen.

Pumpkin Chili

This dish was made for a Halloween feast. I am so glad I made it for dinner since I spent the day at the pharmacy gorging on lots of sugar. The chili was the perfect end to the night along with the chicken and chickpea salads that Laura contributed. It was a rainy night for trick or treating but some cute neighborhood kids did make it out to our house. This recipe is from The Kitchn, and I chose it because it included some cornmeal in the recipe which I found intriguing. Turns out, it is delicious.

1 medium pie pumpkin (3 pounds!)

3 parsnips  

1/2 cup coconut oil

1/2 cup cornmeal

2 red bell peppers, chopped

1 large yellow onion, chopped

1 head garlic, minced

3-5 hot peppers, sliced

2 tablespoons tomato paste

3 cups vegetarian broth

1-28 ounce can diced tomatoes 

1 can garbanzo beans

1 can black beans

2 cups frozen corn

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice 

1 tbsp chili powder

1 tsp cinnamon

1 tbsp cumin

Several dashes Worcestershire sauce

Salt and freshly ground black pepper, to taste 

Pumpkin Cinnamon Rolls

It was freezing this last week, so naturally homemade cinnamon rolls had to be made. Specifically PUMPKIN CINNAMON ROLLS! The recipe I used was from Smitten Kitchen and I didn't change it much. Laura and I ate these watching a marathon of Pretty Little Liars all day. We only took minor breaks to make whatever food we were craving.

Dough
5 tablespoons unsalted butter, melted
1/2 cup warm milk (or almond milk)
2 1/4 teaspoons active dry yeast
3 1/2 cups all-purpose flour, plus extra for rolling out
1/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/4 cup granulated sugar
1 teaspoon sea salt
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
2/3 cups pumpkin puree
1 large egg

Sugar Filling
3 tbsp unsalted butter, melted
1/3 cup pumpkin butter
3/4 cup packed brown sugar
1/8 teaspoon table salt
2 teaspoons ground cinnamon

Cheesy Delicata Squash Pizza

This pizza was made for Laura's friend's goodbye party. She moved all the way to Russia for a couple of years. We made lots of kinds of squash and had dirt cake for dessert. Pretty much the perfect dinner party.

Ingredients:
1 pizza dough
goat's milk yogurt or ricotta
roasted delicata squash
shredded mozzarella
blue cheese
fresh sage

Start by roasting the delicata squash. You can slice it into cubes and then season them with salt and pepper and roast at 375 degrees until tender. I sliced the squash in half, scooped out the seeds, and roasted the halves until soft. If your squash is smaller, you can eat the peel. I then scooped out the squash to put on the pizza.
To make the pizza: Roll out the dough. Spread a layer of goat milk yogurt onto the dough. Sprinkly mozzarella all over the pizza. Then add the squash cubes, some blue cheese sparingly, and some sage leaves. Bake until golden brown and bubbly at 400 degrees.

Pumpkin Butter

Well instead of carving my pumpkin, I roasted it. I was never great at carving pumpkins anyway. My sisters always did the designing and actual carving. I probably just watched and ate lots of candy. I used a smaller pumpkin to make the pumpkin butter. Ideally you want to find a pie pumpkin which has more flesh and a higher sugar content. Normal pumpkins work too, though.

1/2 small pumpkin
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
1/2 tsp sea salt
1 cinnamon stick
5 cloves

To roast the pumpkin: Cut a ring around the stem and remove. Cut the pumpkin in half and scoop out all of the seeds and the stringy business. Place the pumpkin cut side down on a baking sheet. Bake for about 1/2 hour at 375 degrees. The pumpkin is done when you can pierce the flesh easily with a fork. Let the pumpkin cool. Then using a spoon, scoop out the flesh into a blender or food processor. Blend until it forms a smooth puree. I only used half a pumpkin since I only wanted about 1 pint of pumpkin butter. Feel free to use all of it! I used the other half to make the pumpkin snickerdoodles : )

Pumpkin Snickerdoodles

Our friends Kate and Mark got married this weeked! My contribution to the Pittsburgh cookie table was pumpkin snickerdoodles from A BItchin' Kitchen! They went perfectly with the Weyerbacher pumpkin beer that was served! The wedding was full of gorgeous DIY decorations and lots of great homemade food. (Kate made dozens of cottage cheese pierogies from scratch!). My only advice is to make these as soon as possible! Halloween is tomorrow : )

Cookie Dough:

3 3/4 cups flour

1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/2 teaspoon sea salt
1 tbsp pumpkin pie spice
2 sticks unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 cup cane sugar
1/2 cup dark brown sugar
1 slightly heaping cup pumpkin puree
1 large egg
2 teaspoons vanilla extract

Cinnamon Sugar mixture (makes extra):

1/2 cup sugar
1 teaspoon ground cinnamon
1/2 teaspoon ground ginger
1/4 teaspoon pumpkin pie spice

Baked Apples for Dessert

I spent a couple weeks in a mountain village when I studied abroad in Ecuador, and one of my favorite things about living there was preparing dinner with a couple different local women. The town, Principal, was "famous" for its apples, so we ate apples all the time - people would always give me them because I was a random white girl. One night for dinner we made baked apples for dessert, and I still think it's pretty much the ideal simple dessert.

 We scooped the core out, filled it in with sugar, topped them with butter and poured sparkling wine on top. Then they're roasted in the oven (or wrapped in foil over a fire) until the apples soften. 

Principal, Ecuador - close to Cuenca

The way I've done that kind of apple dessert since then is pretty much the same, but I haven't tried the sparkling wine on top again. My favorite topping is peanut butter! I also like sprinkling cinnamon on top or smushing a marshmallow on top of the butter.

BAKED APPLES FOR DESSERT

Adapted from the kitchens of Ecuadorian ladies

Per person/apple 

1 apple

2-3 tbsp sugar

thin slice of butter

Apple Cinnamon Bread Pudding

This is a great brunch recipe! It's really easy and fast, and it looks and tastes like something special. I served it with some cream cheese frosting, which is just cream cheese, powdered sugar and a little vanilla.

APPLE CINNAMON BREAD PUDDING
Adapted from About.com Southern Food

4-5 cups day+ old bread, cut into cubes or ripped into chunks

1 tbsp cinnamon
1 apple, sliced thin
1/4 cup raisins, or mixed dried fruit (raisins, cranberries, apricots, etc.)
2 cups milk
1 cup brown sugar
3 tbsp butter
3 eggs
1 tsp vanilla
1-2 tbsp sugar

Preheat your oven to 350. Distribute the bread pieces, apples, raisins and cinnamon in a baking dish. In a saucepan, heat up the milk, brown sugar and butter until it's all mixed and melted. Meanwhile, mix up the eggs and vanilla. Then pour the hot milk mixture into the eggs and combine. Pour that into the baking dish and use a spatula to make sure all the bread is covered. Top with some sugar and bake at 350 for about 45 minutes. The top should be a little crispy.

Snickerdoodle Blondies, or "Oh hey, blog, I'm back"

So I am one of those... I search Pinterest for recipes from time to time.  Not too ashamed to admit it.  In July I went to meet my boyfriend's parents for the first time (after only dating for a couple months), and I was way nervous.  Momma D always says to not go to someone's home empty handed, and that Italians typically bring bread and wine.  Momma D also says a lot of things that aren't appropriate for this blog.  Michelle believes in always bringing baked goods, and showing people you love them with delicious foods.  With all this in mind and extensive searches and worrying, I set out to make this recipe.

Snickerdoodle Blondies

Adapted from My Own Sweet Thyme  

2 2/3 cups all-pupose flour

2 teaspoons baking powder
1 teaspoon salt
2 cups packed brown sugar, light or dark
1 cup butter, room temp
2 eggs, room temp
1 Tablespoon vanilla
1/4 cup white sugar (last time I used turbinado sugar, added a good texture)
1 1/2 Tablespoons ground cinnamon (last time I accidently added a lot; feel free to do the same)

Pumpkin Ginger Cookies

Cookies! Plan ahead so you can let the dough chill in the fridge for an hour or overnight.

PUMPKIN GINGER COOKIES

From Eating for England (adapted from Two Peas in Their Pod)

1/2 cup (1 stick) butter, at room temperature

1 cup granulated sugar, plus more for rolling the cookies

1/2 cup pumpkin puree

1/4 cup molasses

1 large egg

1 teaspoon vanilla extract

2 1/3 cups all-purpose flour

2 teaspoons baking soda

2 teaspoons cinnamon

1 1/2 teaspoons ground ginger

1 teaspoon ground cloves

1/2 teaspoon salt

End of Summer Tomato Pie

I pulled up my cherry tomato plant, and this pie used up the last garden tomatoes! I really really love tomato pie - made the way my family makes it, covered in a mayo-cheese mixture in a buttery pie crust, it is probably one of the least healthy and most delicious way to enjoy tomatoes. 

END OF SUMMER TOMATO PIE

1 pie dough (I used the same pie dough that I used for the butternut squash galette because it's amazing but any savory dough will be good)

1/2 onion, sliced 

1 tsp butter

pinch salt

3 cloves garlic, minced

1 heaping cup cherry tomatoes, halved

1/2 cup mayonnaise

1 cup mozzarella, grated

pinch cayenne & salt & pepper

2 tbsp parmesan, grated

fresh herbs - I used sage this time but basil is traditional

Pumpkin Chocolate Chip Muffins

We've already been making quite a few pumpkin recipes at our house, but so far pretty much all of them have been revisiting old favorites. This recipe is an old favorite, too, but not one that's already on the blog! 

PUMPKIN CHOCOLATE CHIP MUFFINS

From Very Best Baking (aka Nestle)

1 1/2 cups flour

1 1/2 cups whole wheat flour 

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp baking soda

2 tsp cinnamon

2 tsp pumpkin pie spice (or big pinches of nutmeg, cloves, giver)

1/2 tsp salt

4 eggs, slightly beaten

2 cups sugar

15 oz pumpkin puree

1 cup vegetable oil

2 cups semi-sweet chocolate chips

1. Preheat oven to 350 and grease or line 24-30 muffin cups.

2. Combine the flours, baking soda, baking powder, cinnamon, pumpkin pie spice and salt in a medium bowl. In another large bowl, whisk together the eggs and sugar. Add the pumpkin puree and oil and whisk again. Stir in the flour mixture until moistened. Add in the chocolate chips. 

3. Divide the batter into the muffin cups. Bake them for 20-25 minutes (unless you do mini-muffins, which will take about 15 minutes per pan). They are done when the tops spring back when poked. Cool in pans on wire racks for 5 minutes.

Vegan Butternut Squash Macaroni and Cashews!

It seems silly to call this dish macaroni and cheese, but it actually does taste like it! Brittany said this is her favorite version of my many vegan mac and cheeses. I made it for a late dinner after yoga class at the Union project (it was much needed)!

2 cups butternut squash puree
1/2 apple, roasted until soft
1 small onion, roasted until tender
2 cups cashews, soaked overnight in bowl of water
1/2 cup nutritional yeast
salt and pepper
1 pound pasta

Haluski

I'm going to admit, I had to double check the spelling of this dish before posting it! Well I'm definitely not Polish. The first time I had this was from a Croatian church and it was drowned in butter : ) This is the perfect dish to serve with pierogies (carbs plus carbs!). Nick, Laura, and I rolled these homemade egg noodles out pretty quickly. The recipe is from the food blog, Sugar Aunts.

For the egg noodles:

2 cups flour plus more for kneading

1 tsp sea salt

4 eggs

1 tbsp vegetable oil
1 tbsp warm water

Whisk the flour and sea salt together. Make a well in the center and pour in the wet ingredients. Mixing with a fork, beat the eggs and start incorporating the flour a bit at a time. Add additional flour as needed until the dough forms a ball and does not stick to the mixing bowl too much. (I added maybe half a cup of flour since the  eggs I used were pretty large)
Cover mixing bowl with damp tea towel and let sit for 10 minutes. On a floured surface, knead the dough until it no longer sticks to the counter.
To roll out the noodles: divide out the dough, roll it out thinly, and then slice into thin strips of pasta (like linguine). Slice again to make shorter egg noodles. We also just formed some noodles by breaking off small pieces of dough and shaping rough noodles with our hands.

For the haluski:
1/2 head cabbage (1 whole head if it's a small cabbage)
1 large yellow onion
2-3 tbsp ghee
homemade noodles!

Simple Apple Crisp

This gluten-free and vegan apple crisp is so perfect for a fall day. With some vanilla ice cream, it's even better! My favorite recipes are the ones that are so simple, they can be made in just a few minutes. I didn't even peel the apples (I used Jonagolds for a sweet taste). The recipe is from The Minimalist Baker!

Apples:
8-10 apples, cored and sliced
splash of lemon juice
1 tsp cinnamon

For the topping:
1/3 cup dark brown sugar
1/2 cup rolled oats
1/4 cup almond meal
1/4 cup gluten-free flour mix
1 tsp cinnamon
pinch salt
1/3 cup solid coconut oil

Preheat oven to 375 degrees. Toss the cut apples with some lemon juice and cinnamon. Add to baking dish. Mix the topping by combining the dry ingredients in a mixing bowl. Then add the coconut oil and mix to form a crumbly mixture. Pour over the apples and bake for about 45 minutes. Serve with ice cream or for breakfast with oatmeal!

Roasted Squash with Lemon-Tahini Dressing

I got an acorn squash and a delicata squash at the East Liberty farmer's market on Monday, so it was a good time to try out this Bon Appetit recipe! We really liked the lemon-tahini sauce. It was all of our first time trying delicata squash, and it's really good! You can eat the skin of the delicata but not the acorn squash. I made it for part of our dinner last night (Michelle made curried cauliflower and enchiladas!) and then ate it again today for lunch with cream of spinach soup.

ROASTED SQUASH WITH LEMON-TAHINI DRESSING

Adapted from Bon Appetit


1 acorn or kabocha squash, washed and chopped into 1" wedges
1 delicata squash, washed and chopped into 1" wedges
7 tbsp extra virgin olive oil
1 tsp cayenne pepper
1 tbsp lemon juice
1 tbsp tahini
1/4 cup plain Greek yogurt
crushed red pepper flakes

1. Preheat to 425°. Place acorn or kabocha squash on a rimmed baking sheet and delicata on a second sheet. Divide 3 tablespoons oil and 1 1/4 teaspoons cayenne between sheets. Season squash with salt and pepper; toss. Roast for 25 minutes or until at least most of the pieces of squash are browned. When you take them out, combine them into one dish to serve. 

2. Meanwhile, whisk lemon juice, tahini, and Greek yogurt in a small bowl to blend. Gradually whisk in remaining 3 tablespoons oil. Season to taste with salt and pepper.

3. Transfer squash to a platter. Drizzle tahini sauce over and sprinkle with crushed red pepper flakes.